Certifications according to ISO 50001 based on ISO 50003 - Main changes

Since ISO 50001 was first published in 2011, a number of other related standards have been developed to complete ISO's energy management and energy savings portfolio. Most relevant for all organizations wanting to have their energy management system (EMS) certified is ISO 50003:2014, which stipulates the requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of energy management systems, in addition to ISO 17021.

According to the newly released document "Instructions for Transition to ISO 50003:2014", all certification bodies under DAkkS are required to implement the new accreditation basis by 14 October, 2017. As soon as the new requirements of ISO 50003:2014 have been adopted, all initial and re-certifications shall take place on the basis of these new accreditation rules.

An overview of relevant changes:

• The calculation of audit duration will be changing and will be based on the factors described in Clause 5.3 of this International Standard.

• There are also additions regarding the conduct of site sampling procedures, and a new requirement to document the CIP of energy-related performance during initial and re-certification audits.

• One of the major changes concerns the competence requirements for the auditors involved in the EMS certification activities.

What do these changes mean for us?

Beginning with the successful transition to the accreditation according to ISO 50003:2014, all initial and re-certifications will be carried out based on this standard. Existing offers and audit schedules based on the old regulations may need to be adapted. This does not affect ongoing procedures for which surveillance audits are planned in 2017, or initial certifications scheduled to be conducted prior to the transition in accordance with the currently valid rules of the Deutsche Akkreditierungsstelle GmbH (DAkkS). This means that all previous certifications according to ISO 50001, which have not been transitioned to the new certification procedure according to ISO 50003, will no longer be valid after 13 Oktober, 2020.

The changes also affect the appointment of ISO 50001 auditors. From now on, all  new applicants for "ISO 50001:2011 – based on ISO 50003:2014"  (not already appointed and registered EMS auditors) will be appointed only according to the requirements described in the current version of the CD 08, ANNEX D.

The competence of all already appointed and registered EMS auditors has to be reviewed until end of June 2017 according to the new requirements based on ISO 50003. In this case please upload an "application for a further standard", selecting ISO 50001:2011 – Based on ISO 50003:20142 as standard in the corporate database.

If you have any questions about this topic, please don't hesitate to contact Dr. Eric Werner-Korall, Global Program Manager of Energie Management or Dr. Claude Nunn, Manager of International Auditor Competence.